What’s the Difference Between Groundhog and Beavers?

Without a clear view of their tails, it can be difficult to distinguish whether a pest is a groundhog or a beaver. Beavers have wide, flattened tails, while groundhogs have short, fluffy ones. However, there are plenty of other ways to tell them apart:

  • Size – Groundhogs typically weigh about 3 kg, while beavers, North America’s largest native rodent, can weigh up to 32kg. The world’s largest rodent is the capybara.
  • Damage – Groundhog digging results in more pest control calls than any other burrowing mammal in Canada. On the other hand, beavers are semi-aquatic, preferring to swim and build their dams across streams and rivers.

Groundhog & Beaver Damage

When it comes to Groundhogs vs. Beavers, neither are a welcome sight to most property owners. Both pests graze on vegetation and garden plants, eating up homeowners’ hard work and substantial landscape investments.

While groundhogs dig unsightly holes that pose a tripping hazard, beavers take lawn destruction one step further. Chewing through an average of 216 trees each year, a single beaver can fell trees up to 40cm in diameter to build lodges and dam bodies of water. This, in turn, may lead to falling tree damage or flooding.

Removing Groundhogs vs. Beavers

Both pests create important habitats for other kinds of wildlife with their burrowing and engineering feats. However, these behaviours are not acceptable when they put people at risk.

Humane prevention and removal tactics can discourage them from taking up residence in yards. In addition to fencing gardens and circling trees or culverts with chicken wire, traps and snares are available to catch the pests and remove them safely.

For a custom wildlife control plan, rely on the trained wildlife professionals at Orkin Canada.